The Democratic Republic of Congo’s national soccer team arrived in Houston on Thursday for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, and the drc world cup outfit drew cheers at its Galleria hotel. The team will be based in Houston throughout the tournament, with its opening match scheduled for June 17 in the city.
Houston Airport Arrival
The squad landed at Bush Intercontinental Airport on Thursday afternoon before heading to the hotel, where fans from the Congolese diaspora greeted the players with screams and cheers. The team also posed for pictures on the hotel stairs after entering.
Yvette Kapinga Ngandu, Congo’s ambassador, said, “I'm very proud,” after the arrival. She added that it had been “50-plus years” since the country last qualified for the World Cup under the name Zaire, and that only 10 African countries are playing this time around.
Galleria Hotel Welcome
The arrival put Houston at the center of Congo’s tournament base. The city’s FIFA Fan Festival opened in East Downtown the same day and hit its 7,500-person capacity not long after opening, with multiple people reportedly hospitalized with heat-related illnesses.
That crowded first day came as the tournament opener began in Mexico City between Mexico and South Africa. For Congolese supporters in Houston, the team’s presence in the city changes the routine fast: the players are already in place, and the group will stay based there through the tournament.
Congolese Diaspora Stakes
Marcus Mpwo, a Houstonian born and raised in Congo, said, “This is an opportunity for Congo to set a different pace, a different image, a different history, for the rest to come,” and added that kids watching Congo on the world stage will see that “yeah, it's possible.” Tshiunza Kalubi said, “They represent all of us, regardless of where we’re from, regardless of where we grew up, regardless of our status.”
David Valdez, waiting to enter the fan festival, said, “The World Cup only comes around once every four years,” which fits the urgency around Congo’s return after more than 50 years away from the tournament. The broader backdrop at home is harsher still, with a deadly Ebola outbreak in Congo, making the Houston arrival carry more than one layer of weight for the people following it.
